Willy Chavarria Spring/Summer 19

In a continuation of last season’s stylistic agenda, Chavarria expressed that this line also centered around immigration rights. Thus the designer brilliantly channelled the aesthetic spirit of East LA and the Bronx in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, two communities historically and culturally tied to immigrancy.

From the baggy silhouettes and double-layered athletic shorts to the graphic designs printed on sweaters and shirts laden with Polo Sport references, Chavarria truly captured, in both form and content, the rich cultural legacy immigrant populations have gifted upon the urban landscape.

A New York Gaze

Last night, Dolce Vita celebrated the launch of a collaborative visual project in honor of the brand’s LES roots, entitled A NEW YORK GAZE.

For the project, Dolce Vita commissioned four female artists who embody all the spirit, dynamism and originality not only of the Lower East Side, but of the label itself.

“Today, every Dolce Vita collection is designed for the fearless, the dreamers, the rebels, and the daring who make their own rules,” read the press release, “just like the women.”

The women selected were Cheryl Dunn, Emily Soto, Hannah Ryan, and Sabrina Santiago, all NYC-based photographers and filmmakers, who were given complete creative license in the making of their own series, enabling each to explore the concept through her own unique lenses.

As one of the first boutiques in the downtown NY neighborhood, Dolce Vita opened its doors on Ludlow Street in 2001. Since then, the brand has successfully become the go-to shoe for every cool girl in the city. Last night, the party was held at iconic LES bar, Max Fish, just down the block from the label’s OG shop—talk about going full circle.

Alexander Wang's America

November 16, 2018

Over the summer, Alexander Wang decided to rebel against the industry by showing his Spring/Summer '19 collection in June, completely ignoring the traditional fashion calendar. The result—besides a bunch of other designers following suit—was 'Collection 1,' a phenomenal collection inspired by Americana, punk and Chinoiserie. To coincide with the release of the collection this fall, the designer will be releasing three separate campaigns that coordinate with each of his three main inspirations.

The Americana-themed imagery takes classic American archetypes—like the football star, the cheerleader and the pageant queen—and flips them on their head. Considering the current political climate in the US, the campaign reimagines the country through the brand's subversive, boundary-pushing lens.

Though we're not happy with Trump's America, Wang's is one we'd definitely want to live in.

Made in Prison

November 15, 2018

The label Carcel popped up on the office radar for a couple of reasons, the coolest being its inspirational approach to clothing production. Danish founder of the label Veronica D’Souza and creative director Louise van Hauen announced the release of the label's new collection, in collaboration with eco-friendly e-comm platform Sardin as their biggest drop yet. The line is called "Made in Prison"

...and the title can be taken literally.

While this particular collection was produced in a female prison in Peru, this is not Carcel's first rodeo with ethical sourcing. Since the brands inception, they have made it a point to operate at the intersection of quality and sustainability, with a focus on production in places riddled with the highest rates of crime due to poverty.

After conducting research in various female prisons all over the globe, D'Souza concluded that poverty was a key factor that drove women to commit crime in the first place. So, instead of perpetuating the cycle of incarceration, D'Souza decided to use her brand as a means of empowering marginalized women through a meaningful and constructive use of their prison sentences.

The campaign, shot in Berlin by Spanish photographer Silvia Conde captures in bold color, the collection’s artful and sophisticated tailoring, proving that fashion with a social conscious will never go out of style.